The Salt Shaker. You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world. Jesus (Matthew 5:13-

Transcription

1 The Salt Shaker You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world. Jesus (Matthew 5:13- D E C E M B E R 2015 OUR MISSION Parkville Presbyterian Church is a community of believers following Jesus Christ by sharing God s Word, serving and welcoming all. Worship Surveys and Christmas Carolsjjggggggggg On Sunday, December 6, after the 11:00 service, we'll gather for a potluck meal, a carol sing, and a conversation about this fall's worship survey results. Bring a side dish or dessert to share if you are able to, but most significantly bring yourself to this important conversation in the life of our church. I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E : Adult Education 2 Pastoral Visit 3 As we transition from celebrating Thanksgiving, begin our observance of Advent and look forward to Christmas and the New Year, many people in our country and around the world are suffering from a variety of disasters. As you budget for the season, prayerfully consider including the least of these (and most needy) in your gift-giving: On behalf of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the Faith and Families Group is assembling school kits for victims of flooding in the southeast. To learn more about this nationwide project, click here: giftofheartcontents.pdf Angel Tree 4 Worship Survey 5 Feedback Youth and Global 6 Mission Seasonal 7 Opportunities Christmas Eve 8 Family Promise 9 And to sign up to donate items to our effort, click here: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/ d/15lzgxqg3k3dfrl0zsugpgp1ri8rg8nuxb_veao9nsog/edit#gid=0 Faith and Families is also looking for folks who will assemble or donate cloth bags for the kits, or donate money to ship them home. For more information, contact Shannon Windmeyer at srwindmeyer@gmail.com. 4

2 Thank you for all you do to bless our neighbors! Place shared items in the grocery cart outside the Sanctuary. Special needs at this time are: December Food Pantry Needs Syrup Shampoo Conditioner Flour Sugar Ramen noodles Jell-O and pudding Feminine hygiene products Cash donations are always helpful make checks to SPEAC Food Pantry December Adult Education Two Sunday's only... Dec 20th and 9:40am. The Protestant Reformation, Geneva to Parkville and Beyond The history of the Protestant Reformation is an enduring one. The beliefs, thoughts and connections that brought the Reformed Church from its beginnings on the shores of a lake in Switzerland in 1536 spread its influence the world over even to a dusty little Missouri River town on the western frontier of America in That church still manifests itself today. What was the church like in Pastor John Calvin's day? How is that church the same and how is it a different church in Pastor Steven Andrews' day? Where has it been and where is it headed? Join us and find out. Mike Vaughn facilitates. Thank you! Thanks to all who have been praying this last year for my nephew, Scott Lavelock, and my great great nephew, Lyndon Haralson. Both are doing quite well at this time. Your prayers were greatly appreciated. Dona Jones Dearest Church Family, Thank you each and everyone for your prayers, beautiful and thoughtful cards, delicious food and well wishes that you have so generously showered on our family during the past few weeks. We have needed you and you have been there for us. Love and Blessings to all of you, Gerry and Clarence Lowery Thank you for joining the Friends of the program at Park University. Your generous contribution will provide scholarship support for our students. Roger Kugler, Director of International The Faith and Families Class enjoyed an evening in Parkville (bottom picture) while volunteers led many activities for their children (left). Special guests were our visiting family, who joined in the fun. Many thanks to the volunteers and to our super nursery assistant, Miss Carrie, who spent the evening with us, too. Items are welcome throughout the month! T H E S A L T S H A K E R

3 Pastoral Visit P A G E 3 On October 2 nd, I celebrated Sukkot (which is sometimes known as the Festival of Booths, Feast of Tabernacles, or Festival of Shelters) with members and friends of the Cherith Brook Catholic Worker community. Each year, sometime around the first days of October, Cherith Brook marks this Jewish festival by inviting their friends to spend a night on the streets of Kansas City. This was my second year participating in the celebration as I and a cohort of others stepped out of our comfort zones without wallets, cash, cell phones, IDs, or any of our other standard forms of protection. The night, as you might expect, was difficult. I had extra blankets and jackets and layers of clothing, but they weren t enough to protect me from the overwhelming cold that permeated every layer. That night, the temperature was never lower than forty degrees, and that s weather I normally love, but when you re out in it all night, the cold saturates every layer and digs down into your bones. Another difficult aspect of the experience was the walking. In a few hours, our group walked from the Cherith Brook house (3308 E 12 th ) to dinner at Hope City (E 24 th St.) to evening shelter at Union Station and a nearby place where we finally laid down our heads. All told, it was around seven miles of walking, and I did okay but my feet hurt, and I can t imagine doing it every day. Material compassion was abundant... Personal compassion was harder to come by And still, even with all that said, there were joyful and joyous aspects of the evening, as well. It was a true pleasure to get to know Lonnie, the formerly homeless man who was our guide that night. It was a joy to share a generic chocolate bar with him and others, while we sat on a bench outside of Union Station, and watched people with wallets spending their evenings in different ways. It was a joy to hear him share joyful stories of God s provision from his time on the streets: to talk about those moments when a random person stopped by the park with leftover sandwiches, or a Jack Stack worker gave him a pan full of brisket because he couldn t bear to throw it away or the moments when new friends open up space in the abandoned places they call home, sharing the hospitality of the streets. Because of our church s ministries with Hillcrest and Family Promise, I was aware that we were experiencing a particular kind of homelessness that evening a kind of chronic homelessness that is different from the reality of the families we meet through those ministries. Many of the people I was journeying with that evening suffered from mental illness, or were deep in the throes of addiction, or are in some other way considered unemployable. For these folks, their particular suffering is met by ministries of compassion by places where they can eat and shower and have a warm place to sleep (even if that warm place is overcrowded and dangerous). From what I could see, material compassion was abundant, but personal compassion the willingness to treat those without homes like dignified human beings was harder to come by. Continued, next page

4 Pastoral Visit (continued from previous page) If you d like to know more about the experience of this night, I d be glad to tell you. And if you d like to know more about the Scriptural foundation of Sukkot, check out Deuteronomy 8:11-20 and Leviticus 23: But for now, I d like to talk about Advent, and that may seem like a strange transition to make, but bear with me. The Christmas story is intertwined with themes of homelessness and searching for shelter, from Mary and Joseph searching for a place to lay their heads and finally settling on a manger, to their need to flee as refugees to escape the wrath of King Herod (Matthew 2:13-18). And even beyond those connections, Advent is about the search for a spiritual and physical home. It s about the ancient Israelites and their longing for a messiah who would make all the wrong things right. It s also about our reception of Jesus as a partial fulfillment of those hopes and longings. Advent is a time to celebrate that Christ has come to dwell in our hearts and free us from the weight of guilt and sin, but it s also a time to recognize that the work remains unfinished that injustice, violence, poverty, and pain are still driving forces in the world and that we are committed to eradicating them, as much as we can, even as we also wait for God to complete the work of redemption. During this Advent season, as you see the blue banners layering one on top of the other, and the trees being partially but not fully decorated, and the greens taking time to move into the sanctuary, remember that this slow movement represents a promise that awaits fulfillment and a hope that is not yet achieved because during this season in particular, we dare to dream about and hope for a world where everyone is fed, housed, healthy, in love, and at peace. Angel Tree Gifts The ANGEL TREE in the Narthex will provide a special Christmas for our Hillcrest family a mother and two daughters. Well, the tree can t actually do it by itself; it displays the gifts that are needed. You are invited to take one off the tree and bring back your UNWRAPPED gift no later than December 13. Birthday Celebration A surprise 90th birthday party was held Saturday, November 28 at McCoy Meeting House at Park Univ. for Carolyn Smith. The event was hosted by Carolyn's three sons, Douglas of Salt Lake City, Utah; Greg, of Overland Park, KS; and Allen, of Boulder, CO; and their families. Carolyn's actual birthday is December 18. You may send cards to Carolyn at this address: The Sweet Life at Grand Court; Lamar Ave., Suite 216; Overland Park, KS T H E S A L T S H A K E R

5 FEEDBACK: Congregational Worship Survey P A G E 5 In September and October, many of you filled out an extensive survey on worship. The Session, the Passionate Worship team, and I are deeply grateful for your feedback, and look forward to using it to craft worship experiences that will be meaningful to the congregation. I m pleased to report that a strong majority of survey respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with their overall worship experience, with 74% of respondents rating the congregational hymns in a positive way, while 78% said the same about choral offerings, and nearly everyone seems to like the sermons. When asked to comment, many respondents noted the deep connection between the music and message offered in each service, even though a few failed to see those connections. And beyond the overall satisfaction, there were, of course, areas that were lifted up again and again as areas of dissatisfaction we might address. A few examples: Many people noted, in one way or another, that many services last longer than an hour. This is no doubt at least partially due to my conversational sermon style, which doesn t lend itself to tightness and brevity, but other elements of the service are taking up some time, as well. Toward that end, Susan Heim-Davis has been working to reduce the length of children s sermons at the 11:00 service, and I ve been working on shortening both my prayers and the Call to Discipleship. The length of last week s service and the length of the Call to Discipleship within that service were I hope notable exceptions to the rule of seeking brevity. Clearly, there s still more work to be done on this front. I have also, as some requested, endeavored to offer the children s sermon more often (at the 11:00 service; I almost always offer them at 8:30). Starting last summer, I had a goal of offering them at least once a month, and I fell off the wagon a bit, but I m working to get back on board. Some people lifted up a desire for greater variety in hymn selection and choral offerings, with some saying that choral and solo offerings in particular seemed too classical or operatic. Toward that end, Paul and I have endeavored over the past few months to offer greater variety in music. In fact, of the 20 choral and solo offerings lifted up since August 1st, only three have been classical, while the rest have come from the African-American spiritual tradition, modern fusion, folk, and contemporary choral movements. In a similar way, of the 72 hymns we have sung since August 1st, 13 were classic Protestant hymns (like Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah), and 10 were modern Protestant hymns (like Called as Partners in Christ s Service), while the rest came from contemporary Catholic traditions (You Are Mine, Gather Us In), and folk, revival, Gospel, global and spiritual movements. Of course, even while some expressed a desire for greater variety, others said there was too much variety, as they expressed a desire for songs that were more familiar. In a similar way, some people said the music was too loud, while others felt it was just right. Some thought it was not traditional enough, while others called for more upbeat music. I believe it would be impossible to consistently craft worship experiences that met everyone s tastes and preferences, every time. Because of this, Paul and I endeavor to take all these prefer- (Continued on next page)

6 (Continued from previous page) ences into account as we craft services that, in our view and in our hopes, match the message that is springing from the word of God that day. In this way, we hope to craft services that are transformative, with an aim toward participating in God s work of forming us as the Lord s people. We will not always succeed in doing this, but with your continued feedback and support, we will do our best. One final note: the worship survey was extensive, and there were many notes and comments I couldn t respond to in this piece, and may not be able to respond to during the potluck lunch after worship on December 6th. I hope that, if you offered something and haven t heard or seen a response, you will bring your feedback to Paul or me or both of us, and give us a chance to work out together what it means to be God s people as we continue to work out worship in awe, trembling, fear of God, and love. PPC Youth Take on Global Mission Led by Pastor Steve, our Upper Elementary and Middle School youth group has been meeting faithfully at 4:00 p.m. almost every Sunday evening this year. During that time, we ve grown a little in numbers and a lot in spirit and one of the ways we ve been growing spiritually is by preparing a mission project. You may recall that on April 25th, Nepal was hit by a devastating earthquake, with large-scale aftershocks reverberating for weeks. Members of our youth group were particularly struck by this tragedy and its aftermath when it occurred, and since that time, we ve had conversations about how natural disasters around the world fade from the news and from our attention even while the needs remain and we ve talked about how we might be able to help. And here s what we figured out: the Fuller Center s global network is doing some amazing work in Nepal. They built houses in a village that was thirty miles from the epicenter of the earthquake, and even when other buildings in that village crumbled, the Fuller Center houses stood strong. As Nepal continues to rebuild, this worthy organization has set an ambitious goal of not only building thousands of new houses, but also teaching others their construction methods and spreading the wealth. And we can participate in this good work by raising funds for their effort. Over the next few weeks, keep your eyes open for more information about the Fuller Center s work, and the unique approach to raising funds the youth are going to offer. We think you ll find this effort to be more than worth your time and attention, even as it also helps our youth continue to grow in the faith. T H E S A L T S H A K E R

7 Gifts for Northland Children! To keep the Christmas spirit alive and the Christmas Store open, new toys and gifts are needed for approximately 500 children. The Mission Team would like to give the congregation an opportunity to contribute to the Christmas Store by bringing new unwrapped toys and gifts to the church. Look for the Christmas Store collection box in the narthex THIS SUNDAY, December 6. Volunteers are always needed to help at the Christmas Store. Welcoming New and Returning Park University Students P A G E 7 On January 8 th, the mission team of Parkville Pres will partner with the Episcopalian Church of the Redeemer to offer a welcome meal to new and returning international students at Park University. If you can help with an entrée, side dish, or dessert, whether you can be there on that day or not or if you can help serve the meal and get to know the students please contact Linda Tillinghast at You can also help by donating items for welcome kits. On December 13 th and afterward, there will be a box in the narthex to collect donations of: new towels, washrags, toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, body wash, toothbrushes and toothpaste, mouthwash, floss, bar soap), or high-protein snacks (granola bars, crackerswith-cheese-or-peanut-butter), popcorn, tea bags, or hot cocoa. Please help us welcome new and returning students, and show Christ s love to new people in our midst! A Service of Healing and Hope for anyone experiencing loss or loneliness during the holiday season. Come and bring a friend. Sunday, December 20 6pm

8 Three Christmas Eve services: 5:00 Children and Family service, music led by Walker Family 7:00 Traditional service with choir, brass and carols 11:00 A quiet, contemplative service It is always a joy to welcome hometowngrown, but worldwide-known, Celtic Artist Connie Dover to our church as we did on November s Final Friday to launch the Advent Season. T H E S A L T S H A K E R

9 This past month we hosted our first Family Promise guests; we had one family, a working mother and her two sons who are 11 and 2. Every evening they arrived at the church to a homemade meal provided by Pine Ridge Presbyterian members. The table was set with a lovely table cloth and flowers. We had transformed one of our Sunday School classrooms into a bedroom trying to make it as homey as possible. Volunteers welcomed them to our space and spent the evening and the night with them. The evening I volunteered, they were a little late arriving. The mother had lost her wallet and had nearly run out of gas. When they did arrive, you could see she was stressed and her older son was starving; no surprise there! He rushed into the church ahead of her to see what was for dinner. After they ate, they spent the evening in the nursery where the boys could play and read while mom relaxed a bit. P A G E 9 There are two things I love about Family Promise: They accept families who are not currently employed. They accept whole families unlike other homeless programs who will only take a mother and children, and then send the father to a shelter designated for men only. Family Promise makes it possible for the family unit to remain intact. I saw God in all of you who brought food for breakfast and lunches, brought books for the children to read, readied rooms and volunteered to spend time with this family. I saw God in the face of this tired but grateful mother and her two energetic boys. We look forward to hosting more families in the coming months and using this space to welcome other families who are experiencing homelessness. Marla Zaragoza Some ways of Serving in this special season of love Bring warm coats, blankets and sleeping bags for the homeless served through Cherith Brook. Donate to the youth group s effort to support the rebuilding of earthquake-ravaged Nepal. Support the Faith and Family Group as they construct Gift of the Heart kits for the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance work in behalf of flood victims in the southeast.

10 A great opportunity to bring seasonal cheer to members of our church who are homebound, and also to neighbors of the church. It s Sunday, Dec. 13 at 4:00 pm and after caroling we ll gather again at the church for a hot meal and complete our greening of the church for our Christmas celebrations. We hope you ll plan to join us! Passionate Worship Without passion, worship would become dry, routine, boring, and predictable, keeping the form while lacking the spirit. Passionate worship means an extraordinary eagerness to offer the best in worship, honoring God with excellence and with an unusual clarity about the purpose of connecting people to God. -- Five Practices of Faithful Congregations, by Robert Schnase Getting to know you... Getting to know all about you GETTING TO KNOW PARKVILLE PRESBYTERIAN! Are you interested in knowing more about PPC? About how we came to be, and what makes us Presbyterian? Or would you just like to have the opportunity to get to get better acquainted with Pastor Steve and other new members or persons interested in becoming more involved in the church? Join us Saturday, Dec. 12 from 9 to 11:30 am for a primer on who we are, what we believe and what we do. Little Dresses for Africa sewing group meets this Thursday, Dec. 3 from 1pm to 5pm for a work day in Whipple Hall. Come when you can and leave when you must. We can find a task for persons of all sewing skill levels. T H E S A L T S H A K E R

11 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 6 Lord s Supper/ Food Pantry Sunday 8:30 a.m. Worship 9:45 a.m. Church School 11:00 a.m. Worship followed by Survey discussion/pot Luck 4:00 p.m. Upper Elementary & Middle School Youth Group, Youth floor 7:00 p.m. Pizza & Pop Stone Canyon, Downtown Parkville 13 8:30 a.m. Worship 9:45 a.m. Church School 11:00 a.m. Worship 4:00 p.m. Christmas Caroling & light meal Parkville Presbyterian Church December a-10p Park University 6:00 p.m. Bible Study, Room 307 6:00 p.m. Cub Scouts 205/206/208 7:00 p.m. Boy Scouts Whipple Hall 7:00 p.m. Evening Circle at PPC Room :00 p.m. Bible Study, Room 307 6:00 p.m. Cub Scouts 205/206/208 7:00 p.m. Boy Scouts Whipple Hall 1 9a-5p Park University 6:30 p.m. Cubs/rooms 205/206/208/215 7:00 p.m. Session, Room a-10p Park University 6:30 p.m. Cubs/rooms 205/206/208/ :00 p.n. Board of Deacons, Room 307 6:30 p.m. Cub Pack Meeting/Whipple Hall 2 8:00 a.m. Morning Prayers 9a-5p Park University 10:00 a.m. Small Group Meeting, Youth Floor 7:00p.m. Choir Rehearsal 9 8:00 a.m. Morning Prayers 9a-10p Park University 10:00 a.m. Small Group Meeting, Youth Floor 7:00p.m. Choir Rehearsal 16 8:00 a.m. Morning Prayers 10:00 a.m. Small Group Meeting, Youth Floor 7:00p.m. Choir Rehearsal 3 9a-5p Park University 10:00 a.m. Circle III, Room 307 1:00 p.m. Little Dresses for Africa 6:00 p.m. Girl Scouts, Room 206 7:00 p.m. Right Side of the Tracks/Room 205/ Ministry Night 9a-10p Park University 6:00 p.m. Ministry Teams light-meal 6:30 p.m. Worship 7:00 p.m. Ministry Team Meetings 5:00 p.m. Brownies Room 206 7:00 p.m. Right Side of the Tracks/Room 205/ :00 p.m. Girl Scouts, Room 206 7:00 p.m. Right Side of the Tracks/Room 205/ a-5p Park University 11 9a-10p Park University 18 6:00 p.m. Boy Scout Lock-in 5 10:00 a.m. Girl Scouts, Room 205 5:00 p.m. Northland Community Choir Rutter Carols by Graham Tyler Memorial Chapel, Park University 12 9:-11:30 a.m. New Member Class, Room :00 a.m. Worship Team 3:30 p.m. Velveteen Rabbit Christmas Play, Sanctuary 20 8:30 a.m. Worship 9:45 a.m. Church School 11:00 a.m. Worship/ Children s Pageant 6:00 p.m. Blue Christmas Worship Service 21 6:00 p.m. Bible Study, Room 307 6:00 p.m. Cub Scouts 205/206/208 7:00 p.m. Boy Scouts Whipple Hall 22 6:30 p.m. Cubs/rooms 205/206/208/ :00 a.m. Morning Prayers 10:00 a.m. Small Group Meeting, Youth Floor 7:00p.m. Choir Rehearsal 24 Worship at 5:00 p.m., 7:00 p.m. & 11:00 p.m. 7:00 p.m. Right Side of the Tracks/Room 205/ Christmas Day Church Office Closed :30 a.m. Worship 9:45 a.m. Church School 11:00 a.m. Worship 28 9a-10p Park University 6:00 p.m. Cubs/rooms 205/206/208 7:00 p.m. Boy Scouts Whipple Hall 29 6:30 p.m. Cubs/rooms 205/206/208/ :00 a.m. Morning Prayers 31 7:00 p.m. Right Side of the Tracks/Room 205/208 Church closed January 1 in observance of New Year s Day

12 Parkville Presbyterian Church 819 Main Street Parkville, MO Office: Fax: PPC has a Facebook page! Like us at Parkville Presbyterian Church Forward the Salt Shaker to a Friend Sunday Worship 8:30 & 11:00 a.m. Church School: 9:45 a.m. Wednesday Morning Prayers: 7:30 a.m. Church Office: Church Fax: church@parkvillepresby.org Salt Shaker published monthly by Parkville Presbyterian Church The Rev. Steven Andrews, Pastor Paul Erickson, Director of Music and Arts & Organist Peggy Pape, Office Manager News Deadline is NOON Last Sunday of Month T H E S A L T S H A K E R